Chapter 168: Qing Lin

Amidst the endless yellow sand, a youth carrying a massive black ruler on his back, bare-chested and wearing only shorts, was walking slowly, leaving a long string of deep footprints in the sand beneath his feet.

"Alright, that's about enough training for today." At this moment, an aged voice rang out in the youth's ear.

Upon hearing these words, the youth seemed as if he had been granted an amnesty; he collapsed directly onto the scorching sea of sand, gasping for air in large gulps.

"Ah! I don't even have the energy to move a finger!" The youth savored the moment of surviving a disaster; even in such a harsh external environment, it felt incredibly comfortable to him at this moment.

"Look at you, unable to endure even the slightest bit of hardship." Seeing the youth's decadent state, the old man was somewhat dissatisfied.

At this, the youth suddenly sat up and complained, "Teacher, is this just a 'slight bit' of hardship? It's been a month already!"

The two speaking were naturally Xiao Yan and Yao Lao; the two had now been in the Tagor Desert for nearly a month.

Xiao Yan could have walked out of the desert quite quickly, but Yao Lao insisted on letting him stay in this godforsaken place for a while longer.

This was especially true after occasionally running into some Snake-People Tribe squads; he called it, euphemistically: training.

However, the effect was quite good; Xiao Yan's cultivation had successfully advanced from a two-star Dou Shi in the Magical Beast Mountain Range to a three-star Dou Shi.

"Teacher, how much longer do we have to stay in this desert? It's so boring here!" Xiao Yan asked, looking slightly bored while applying a certain red liquid to his body, feeling the pain on his skin.

He had already stayed in the Tagor Desert for a long time, and Xiao Yan really couldn't bring himself to like such a place of cultivation that was even more uncomfortable than the Magical Beast Mountain Range.

Everywhere he looked were continuous sand dunes, occasionally revealing the remains and bones buried under the yellow sand. Compared to the dangers within the Magical Beast Mountain Range, the greatest characteristic of the Tagor Desert was likely its desolation.

If it weren't for the occasional encounter with some unlucky Snake-People Tribe "friends," Xiao Yan would have been unable to stand it long ago.

"If you cannot even endure a little loneliness, how can you talk about becoming a powerhouse!" Yao Lao first reprimanded him, then added,

"Rest assured, I'll give you a day off today; a hundred miles ahead is Shimo City, where your eldest brother is."

Under Xiao Yan's expectant gaze, Yao Lao said, "You don't have to carry the Heavy Xuan Ruler; just arrive before sunset."

"Many thanks, Teacher!" Xiao Yan said in high spirits.

He then unleashed his Dou Qi and sprinted with all his might like a dog let off the leash, finally entering the city before sunset.

"Human, I've finally seen a person!" Looking at the bipedal creatures walking before him, Xiao Yan's eyes welled up with tears; he hadn't seen a single human figure in the Tagor Desert.

For a gregarious animal like humans, a city better satisfied Xiao Yan's needs.

As for Xiao Huohuo, he walked around the city like a country bumpkin, ignoring the strange looks from others, simply savoring the aura of living people and marveling at the beauty of the human world!

"Alright, next is to find my eldest brother." Adjusting his mood, Xiao Yan began to attend to business; he was very concerned about accurate news regarding Exotic Fire.

Even though he had found quite a few low-tier Beast Fire in the Magical Beast Mountain Range back then, it had taken a massive amount of effort just to raise the Burning Technique to the Yellow Tier intermediate level.

In the end, Xiao Yan also gave up on that path; according to Yao Lao's estimation, to promote the Burning Technique to the Mysterious Tier using only Beast Fire, only those top-tier eighth-rank Beast Fire would have even the slightest possibility.

Therefore, it was better to find Exotic Fire, which was more practical.

"Desert Iron Mercenary Group... where is the Desert Iron Mercenary Group?" Xiao Yan kept muttering the name of the mercenary group where Xiao Ding was, while looking around.

"Excuse me... are you looking for the Desert Iron Mercenary Group?" Just then, a clear voice rang out in Xiao Yan's ear.

The latter followed the source of the voice and immediately saw a girl dressed in light green attire, with delicate features, emerald-green pupils, and carrying a vegetable basket in her hand.

"Yes!" Xiao Yan suddenly came to his senses and asked politely, "May I ask if this young lady knows where the Desert Iron Mercenary Group is located?"

"What business do you have looking for the Desert Iron Mercenary Group?" The girl's emerald-green pupils stared straight at Xiao Yan, without blinking.

"I am just going to visit my own relative." Xiao Yan also found it a bit strange; was the other party conducting a census or something, asking about everything?

"Then please follow me, young master!" The girl greeted him and turned to walk away.

"Could this young lady be a member of the Desert Iron Mercenary Group?" Xiao Yan felt a bit strange, hurriedly followed, and asked in confusion.

"What, don't I look like one?" The girl seemed to understand what Xiao Yan meant and looked back with a smile.

"The young lady is indeed a bit different from the mercenaries in my impression, haha~" Xiao Yan scratched his head awkwardly and gave a dry laugh.

This girl seemed even younger than him, as delicate as a porcelain doll, completely different from the rugged mercenary men and wild mercenary women in his mind.

Moreover, she didn't seem to have much cultivation, and coupled with the vegetable basket in her hand,

"She must just be a maid!" Xiao Yan guessed in his heart.

"May I ask what this young lady is called?" Xiao Yan asked, trying to make conversation.

"Qing Lin!" the girl said without looking back.

"I am Xiao Yan, pleased to meet you, Miss Qing Lin." Xiao Yan said with a smile.

But just as Xiao Yan said his name, Qing Lin suddenly turned around, three small dots appearing faintly in her emerald-green pupils, and looked at him in surprise, which made Xiao Yan feel a bit creeped out.

"Your name is Xiao Yan?"

"That's right!" Xiao Yan asked suspiciously, "Is there a problem?"

"You wouldn't happen to be here to find your eldest brother, would you?" Qing Lin's lips curled into a cute yet somewhat cunning smile as she suddenly said.

"Uh, how did you know?" Xiao Yan was surprised for a moment and was tricked into revealing it, then realized it was improper and immediately shut his mouth.

"Yo, you still want to keep secrets from me?" Seeing this, Qing Lin said with great interest.

"Don't worry, you'll come to find me voluntarily in a while, follow me!" Qing Lin gave a mysterious smile and turned to continue leading the way.

"Uh, what a strange person!" Xiao Yan looked at Qing Lin's abnormal behavior and was quite baffled.

However, he wasn't worried; a girl even younger than himself didn't pose enough of a threat.

"Little Yan, I advise you not to underestimate this girl; she is very dangerous." Just as Xiao Yan relaxed his vigilance, Medicine Elder suddenly spoke up to warn him.

"Teacher, what's wrong?" Xiao Yan's expression froze, but he continued walking without changing his pace.

"This girl's strength is at the peak of Dou Ling; if you face her, you'll have no way out," Yao Lao said solemnly.

"Peak of Dou Ling?" Xiao Yan said in astonishment, "Teacher, how is that possible? She isn't even fifteen yet, how could she be so strong?"

"How could you possibly understand the ability of the continent's number one wondrous pupil—the Green Snake Flower Pupil?" Yao Lao first mocked Xiao Yan,

then exclaimed: "I never expected that such a small Shimo City would actually have a Green Snake Flower Pupil, and one that can cultivate at that; truly impressive!"